New biz Enterprise Champ exits firm

Sir Alan Sugar resigned as chairman at Viglen on 1 July, hard on the heels of his appointment as the government’s Enterprise Champion, a Companies House document has revealed.

He became a director of the UK computer maker in 2002, after buying it back in the 1990s. However, Sugar's sudden decision to hang up his boots at Viglen suggests he responded to criticism that staying on at the firm could create a conflict of interest in his government role, as well as affect his star turn on The Apprentice.

Additionally, Sugar resigned from over 30 posts at a myriad of companies he had been company director and/or chairman of, including five firms* that were dissolved over the past two months. Sir Alan quit his first love - Amstrad - just over a year ago. He sold the firm to Sky in 2007.

Last month he was spotted dropping in on the PM Gordon Brown at Number 10.

It was later revealed that the straight-talking-finger-wagging-East-London-boy-made-good had been hired by the embattled Prime Minister as the government's new Enterprise Champion.

Claude Littner, who also regularly appears in the BBC's The Apprentice TV show, has been handed the keys to the door at Viglen.

On 1 July he was appointed as director of the company. He also took director duty at many of the posts Sugar had walked away from just a day earlier.

In May Viglen won a Office of Government Commerce contract worth up to £30m to supply public sector organisations with 70,000 PCs. That will be the company's last big win under the leadership of Sir Alan.

Sugar's departure, first reported in channel trade mag Microscope, sparked suggestions that he could be open to selling Viglen.

The Register asked Viglen and the DTIBERR BIS to comment. However, at time of writing no one had returned our call. ®